Reality TV Negatively Reacts with Society

Reality TV has been a very popular part of American society since its conception, but does it go farther than being simply entertainment? As it has progressed, the content of these shows has become increasingly raunchy on and off screen. The producers and “actors” on these shows are hungry for money and attention, a hunger that grows exponentially as the possibilities of reality TV do. The question, often asked is, does reality TV have a negative effect on our society? The answer is simple: absolutely! Reality TV is produced and directed by people that know exactly how to manipulate the truth. Run by those who lie to the public's face and can legally get away with it. The shows reach out to a very impressionable society and deeply implants immorality, negative self-images and other issues that threaten American society. Reality TV damages those that find themselves in the unfortunate, yet common, situation of being exploited on these shows and it does so purposefully for the sake of money and ratings.

The way that reality TV portrays reality is completely misleading. It is giving the public what they want in a very unethical way, by completely lying about how they reach a “truth”. The people behind the scenes of reality have found a way to perfectly edit everything that the public sees so it keeps only the “juicy stuff” (Crouch pg 1). Often times, producers of competition shows will step in if the plan was to eliminate someone that is good for ratings (Crouch pg 4). Building shows often lie about needed skills, prices and the amount of time it takes for projects (Crouch pg 5). Anytime that shows have “big surprises” it is almost entirely staged because there’s such a complicated process needed for dramatic shots and lighting ...

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...” He refers to this as schadenfreude, or taking pleasure in the misfortune of others (Hazlett par 5). Its not to say there are no lessons to be learned in reality TV but it presents these lessons in an unbeneficial, unhealthy and ineffective way.

So yes, Reality TV is a negative and manipulative influence on our culture. It is an example of immorality in its purest state. The public has been lied to by corporations that have television as we know it in a stranglehold. It influences the impressionable citizens of our society. Something needs to be done! The filth that has taken over such a beneficial piece of technology needs to be dealt with and it needs to be dealt with soon. A single person cannot make a difference here, it needs to be stopped from the core. The producers need to see that just because it’s helpful for ratings doesn’t make it helpful for society!